Come, Josephine

Chapter 49

1928
Rose
Several minutes earlier
"Hey, how are you feeling," Jack sat down beside me, his hand on my shoulder. His face was warm, inviting, but I was exhausted. his behaviour had been out of character and unjust. He had acted in haste, alienated Josie, and betrayed me in the process. He had told her about the baby and forced her into a difficult position. He had hidden too much from me, and burdened Josephine beyond belief. He had confided in the wrong person and shielded the one person he should have spoken to about his worries. Without doubt, he had made a terrible mistake.
He had returned from searching for Josie mere minutes earlier, and his clothes were still damp. It worried me greatly that he had not found her, and I had already been sick. There was nothing I could do but sit and wait.
"As good as can be," I said coolly.
He squeezed my shoulder, "I get that, but I'm sure Nick will be back soon with her-"
"Oh really?" I snapped, "perhaps if you had been kinder to the both of them, she never would have left."
"Rose, I'm sorry, but I was trying to protect the both of you."
"Jack, your starting to sound an awful lot like my mother. I am not a child, damn it!"
I stood up in a fit of rage, but was quickly overcome with a wave of dizziness. He got up beside me and steadied me, "come on, you need to rest. I know I was wrong, but I just didn't want you to worry yourself sick- but you have."
I let out a tearful, pathetic burst of laughter, and give him a weak smile, "I know you had the best intentions, but that doesn't mean that it was okay."
He closed what little space there was between us, and leant down, "I'm going to go back out now and look for them, okay?"
As he went to walk out, there was an almighty bang and shout from the front door, "Jack! I've got her!"
   We ran to the kitchen, where Nick was struggling through the door, Josie in his arms. Both were soaked to the skin.
   Another young man who I had not met walked through the door, "I found her a couple of miles out, out cold."
   "We need to get her in front of the fire," Jack went to Nick, and went to take Josie from him. They struggled towards the fire, and lay her down by the hearth.
   Jack turned to the strange boy with wide eyes, "go, get the doctor."
   He nodded and turned and left without hesitation. Across the room, Nick, crouched over Josie. He held her face in his hands, as if trying to keep her head above water. He held her with such tenderness that it pained me to make him move.
   "Come on, Nick, go get changed, I'll take care of Josie." 
   "I'm fine," he insisted, "I can help."
   "You need to dry off, or you'll get sick as well," I placed a hand on each shoulder, "come on, Nick."
   He relented and got to his feet. He left the room with frequent glances back to the hearth. His face was wrought with worry, his eyebrows upturned. His walk was equally as strained, with each step pained. The limp was a new development, as was his weary expression.
   I turned my attention to Jack, "go upstairs and grab her nightclothes and blankets."
   He left silently, and when he returned, I asked him to step outside. I undressed Josie and replaced her sodden clothes with clean ones. I covered her in thick, woollen blankets, and tried to grab her attention, "Josephine, what happened?"
   She didn't rouse, and a lump rose in my throat. I tried again, and again after that, and for a final, fruitless time. The only thing that told me that she was still with me was the slow rise and fall of her chest.
   Nick returned, his eyes trained on Josie. He looked down on her, his gaze refusing to budge from the blue of her lips. He didn't move a muscle. He just watched her, eyes empty, dull.
   "Stay with her," I said, "I'm going to get Jack."
   I knew that Nick would be of little help at this stage. He was exhausted from his day of searching. Although I knew that he wanted desperately to help, he could do little. He was dehydrated, unfed, and exhausted.
   "Jack?" I stepped out onto the porch, and saw that the weather was brutal, "has that boy called for the doctor?"
   "Yes, he came over to say that he would be half an hour- and to inquire after Josephine," silver rimmed his eyes, and there was no colour in his cheeks. He was just as tired as Nick, and as distracted by Josephine, "can I come back inside yet?"
   I dipped my chin, "she's really sick, Jack."
   He must have seen my pain, or how my despair consumed me. I couldn't bare to think about how sick she actually was; if I examined her closely enough, what would I find?
   Perhaps it was the crack in my voice, for in an instant, his arms were around me, "she's going to be fine, Rose."
   "How can you be so sure?"
   "She's you're daughter."
   I knew what he meant; after the sinking, I was just as sick as Josie. I had pulled through, and gone on to give birth to her nine months later. I had raised her, alone, in a small town where I was a stranger, and pulled through. I had fought to give Josephine the life she deserved.
   A life she was yet to live.
   We went back inside, where Nick lay beside Josie. It looked as if he had just lay down for a moment, his hands still grasping hers. Yes, he had laid down, taken he hands, and fallen asleep. They faced each other, their hands interlocking.
   Nick woke up as Jack shut the door, and he was immediately on his feet. He glanced over at us, took in our expressions, and relaxed. Whether he looked for anger, resentment, or fear I do not know, but at the very least, he found the answers that he needed.